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Newssheet Vendor
"Extra! Extra! The story of the century! Monsters rampage through Wissenland! Ladies of good virtue stalked by the undead! Cultists, courtiers, and cutthroats responsible! Read all about it!" Basic (SoA) It used to be that scribes had a monopoly on the written word but that changed with the invention of the printing press. Now newssheets have become common in the towns and cities of the Empire. They are usually published once a day and are filled with local news and sensational tales. A big story may merit a special edition. Newssheet vendors walk the streets, calling out the top headlines and trying to outdo each other with their theatrics. There are many newssheet publishers in each city and the competition amongst them is savage. It is not unknown for rival vendors to fight each other in the streets. Ironically, big brawls of this type often become tomorrow’s top news item. Note: If you are rolling randomly for your Starting Career, you can substitute Newssheet Vendor for Agitator with your GM’s permission. Main Profile Secondary Profile Skills: Blather or Sleight of Hand, Charm, Common Knowledge (the Empire), Gossip, Haggle, Perception, Performer (Storyteller), Read/Write Talents: Public Speaking, Street Fighting or Streetwise Trappings: Backpack, 1d10 Newssheets, Scroll Case Career Entries Burgher, Messenger, Peasant, Servant, Student Career Exits Agitator, Demagogue, Entertainer, Messenger, Pamphleteer, Rogue, Scribe, Zealot The Daily Relation Short for “The Daily Relation of News Commendable, Historic and Beneficial,” this is arguably the Old World’s oldest published newssheet. Originating in Nuln, this ragged populist scream sheet now circulates throughout the Empire. The news-sheet is unquestionably biased. Almost every article supports one of three premises: the upper class (nobles and merchants in particular) is corrupt, the major religions of the Empire are almost as bad as the upper class (though religion itself is commendable), and the lower class (peasants and farmers in particular) are worthy fellows. This message does not sit well with many nobles, and so the Daily Relation is constantly being persecuted. The chief editor, Johann Darolus, is undaunted. Johann is a man on a mission – to free the Empire from the grip of decadent and worthless nobility and to see it become a republic. Of course, he keeps his treasonous thoughts largely to himself, but it does colour all of his work. Johann is constantly on the lookout for like-minded individuals to join his cause and to help him promote and sell his newspaper. There are rumours that at night, there are secret meetings held in his printing office. Could it be that Johann is no longer content to simply report the news? Perhaps he is about to make some news of his own? The Veracitor Short for “Being the most Noble Veracitor – Gazetteer of the Truth and Guardian of Principle Imperial Values,” this is the Daily Relation’s bitterest rival. Originating in Altdorf, this is published weekly and is of considerably higher quality and cost than the Daily Relation (costing a full crown, compared to the Relation’s two shillings). It also has a considerably different focus. This is the newssheet for the elite. Focusing on the affairs of court and generous projects undertaken by the Empire’s magnanimous noble masters, this newssheet rarely misses an opportunity to fawn over the upper classes. But if one is looking for the state of the Imperial Court in Altdorf, one could scarcely get a better primer than reading a month or two of the Veracitor. The Veracitor is led by press-master Sir Ludovic von Klassen (he disdains the term ‘editor’ as being too plebeian). This knight and retired captain in the Imperial army is a staunch traditionalist. He deeply believes that rags such as the Daily Relation stir up the populace against their true lords and undermine the venerable institutions of his beloved fatherland. He resolved not to stand by and watch this happen, but to fight it at the press and in the streets.